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A Brief Biography of my GrandfatherJane Gilbert Paul Grünwald, was born in Bikacs on March 20, 1893 to Johannes Grünwald and Susanna Blaser. With the encouragement of his mother who feared her youngest son would be drafted, at the age of 18 he left for the United States where his brother-in-law John Steidl was already working. When I asked Grandpa if he also had feared being drafted, he laughed. He said he wanted to leave because he didn't want to be a tobacco farmer. When I asked if he was scared to leave his family and go to a country where he couldn't even speak the language, he just shrugged and said, "It was a good adventure for an 18 year old boy."
Paul Grünwald b. 1893, Bikács His adventure began with a trip to the Austrian border where he met with an Austrian "agent" who would fill out a shipcard for him and put him on a train to Germany. When Grandpa reached the designated port of Bremen, Germany, he waited one week for the Kaiser Wilhelm II to arrive. The ship finally disembarked on October 19, 1911 and arrived at Ellis Island five days later on October 24, 1911. After being processed through Ellis Island (and having his name changed to "Greenwald"), Grandpa was boarded on the proper train to reach Akron, OH where his brother-in-law was living and working. Akron was a common destination for Bikacsian and Donauschwaben immigrants at that time, and Grandpa quickly settled into the community and got a job at a "buggy factory." After two years of life in America, he married Elizabeth Schneider who was born and raised in the village of Herczegfalva not far from Bikács. In 1914 they had a daughter Elizabeth. Tragedy struck in 1918, however, when his wife died in the horrible flu pandemic that is believed to have killed 20 to 40 million people worldwide. He was now left with a young daughter to raise alone. He and his daughter were kindly taken in by his first cousin Rose Blaser Thoricht and her husband Adam. Like my grandfather, Rose was born in Bikacs, but Adam was born in the neighboring village of Gyorkony. After justifiably wearing out his welcome with the Thorichts, Grandpa wrote back to his in-laws in Herczegfalva, and asked if Elizabeth's younger sister would come over to help with his daughter. He would pay her passage. On March 22, 1921, my grandmother Maria Schneider arrived at Ellis Island and boarded a train for Akron. She and my grandfather were married on May 26, 1921, and my mother Rosemary was born two years later.
The Greenwalds, 1932 The family went on to survive many a difficult time including not only the Great Depression, but also a horrible tragedy in which daughter Elizabeth was near-fatally burned in horrific traffic accident in 1938. Having survived the difficult times, though, Grandpa landed a job at the General Tire Corporation and retired from there in the 1950s with 25 years of service. Throughout the years in Akron, he remained very close with his German friends and family, and was an active member of the German-American Club in Akron. He enjoyed dancing the polka, playing cards, tending to his vegetable garden, making sausage and salami, and spending time with his two daughters and three granddaughters. He remained in good health and was physically very active into his early 90s. He lost his wife of 64 years in 1985 when my grandmother died suddenly of a heart attack, and he died 3 years later at the age of 95 after a long and fruitful life.
My Pop Pop at age 94 and our neighbor "Mr. Gus"
Grandpa's favorite sayings..."Keep your head warm. Dat's de main ting." "Keep your feet warm. Dat's de main ting." "Don't owe nobody nuttin'. Dat's de main ting." Saying goodbye with a wave..."Goodbye Sheecago" (Chicago) Greeting us after an unusually long shopping trip..."Where you been? Yoongstown?!?!" To call everyone for a meal..."Zoopzon!" (Soup's on) Post big meal...BURP "Oh yup"
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